Dissatisfied? You Might Have Fewer Rights than You Used To

"I ordered a psychic reading for $79 but now I have changed my mind. How do I get my money back and how soon can I get it?"

"I bought a psychic reading, but now the psychic charges my credit card every month! How do I stop this and get my money back?"

Google any psychic or clairvoyant and you will find on Scambook.com and ripoffreports.com hundreds of complaints about heavily advertised Internet "psychics" and "clairvoyants" including "Norah," "Zoradamus," "Gabriella," "Jenna," "Katherine," "Maria Medium," or "The Extraordinary Chris." Their very long and vague "readings," also very costly, ask you to follow up with further readings or "occult rituals" or "guidance" that will cost more. Always Google before buying; it's the smart thing to do. And the smartest thing to do if you're tempted to call is to first buy a pre-paid, disposable credit card.

But let's say you weren't thinking straight and bought a reading. And now you are unsatisfied.

The Truth About Getting Your Money Back

You have as few as 24 hours or up to 14 days to get a refund from most online "psychics." Look for the psychic site's "Terms of Service" page (usually a link at the bottom of the homepage) for its refund policy and contact information. Also try the "Privacy Policy" page. Some "psychics," such as "Valentina," don't give refunds at all.

If you paid with a U.S. credit card and are dissatisfied, most credit-card companies will help you only if your purchase was made in your home state or within 100 miles of your current mailing address, and the price was more than $50, and you have not yet paid in full. Otherwise the credit-card company will not help you. They used to help their customers more. They stopped doing that.

If you paid with cash or a money order, you will probably not receive a refund despite your best efforts. But keep phoning and/or sending emails, and post complaints on the Internet.

If you asked for a reading, paid for it and got it, the transaction was technically fulfilled. If you are unhappy or "changed your mind," expect to struggle with the "psychic" for a refund; chances of retrieving your money are low. Maybe it's easier to consider it a lesson learned.

If you're repeatedly being charged, call your credit-card company, ask to cancel your card and get one with new numbers, and take the time to tell the credit company in detail exactly why you want to do that, because creditors including these psychic sites reserve the right to keep trying to charge you, forever, until they are paid. THEY CAN get your new card number. Remember, you gave them all your private info, and they also noted your computer's IP address.

Most of the heavily advertised online "psychics" are based in Europe or Asia, and if you don't live there you might have to work harder to find phone numbers, get answers, and obtain any refund you are entitled to.

Put your phone on speakerphone and record all phone conversations related to your refund. Or keep written records of the dates and times you called and emailed the "psychic" about your refund, whom you contacted, and what was said. Keep calling or emailing until you are satisfied.

Post your experience on a consumer site or blog. This could serve to prevent another innocent person from repeating your error.

Their Money-Back Policies

Which of the biggest online "psychics" offer money-back guarantees?

"NORAH" USED TO: After an avalanche of complaints, the website PremiumAstrology.com was updated and plastered with the headlines "Help Desk," "Incredible Customer Support," "Customer Care Guaranteed" and "24/7 Customer Support" via live chat, and its refund deadline was extended from 30 days to 6 months, but it did not help. As of 2015 Premiumastrology.com suspended its readings, and if you're a former client you're probably out of luck.

"JENNA" DOESN'T: "Jenna's" Aboutastro.com closed shop because so many clients posted about receiving poor or no customer service, non-delivery of promised and paid-for readings, and no responses to their inquiries. That site now sends you to a new URL that doesn't have a bad reputation -- yet. Jenna's "terms of service" page admits "she" is fictional, her photo is "illustrative," and that no guarantees are given as to accuracy. No refund policy is mentioned.

"ZORADAMUS" DOES: This site says you should wait for "a full lunar cycle" of 30 days so its prophecies have a chance to come true. But by then, its 30-day unconditional refund guarantee has expired. Clever! To request a refund, the user must send an "email to the address of reply indicated in each mail sent by the company to its customers." Read it for yourself. It also says if you sent cash, there will be NO refund.

"PASQUALINA" DOES: The Net's cheapest psychic bot says, "You have a right of retraction of 7 days but, as announced in my guarantee, in the very improbable case where you would be disappointed by my services, I make personally a commitment to pay off you entirely, on your request, the amount of the fees which you will have settled to me without the slightest discussion. You can contact me easily: By email : pasqualina@pasqualina.com By mail way : Pasqualina – 109 rue du Gall de Gaulle - BP94 - 78513 Rambouillet Cedex France." Remember: Seven days only!

"SARA FREDER" DOES: Just like Pasqualina, a bot owned by the same company, sara-freder.com says, "In the very improbable case where you would be disappointed by my services, I make personally a commitment to pay off you entirely, on your request, the amount of the fees which you will have settled to me without the slightest discussion." However, consumer complaints do say that those "garanteed" [sic] refunds do not materialize.

"GABRIELLA" DOES: "100% money back guarantee: if you were not satisfied with the services provided, you can ask, at any time, for a refund using the website www.payforweb.com. Only the technical costs* (e-mailing costs, on-line space maintenance, order processing costs) are not refundable. The other claims are limited to orders places [sic] in a period of 30 days preceding this application." The "technical costs" mentioned, although we all know it costs nothing to email, and international banking fees, can be pricey. Belonging to Gabriella's "Golden Circle" or "Club Gabriella" costs $79 from your account every two months. Opt out of the "Golden Circle" and you still belong to "Club Gabriella" and will be charged the $79.

"GEORGE TUPAK" DOES: Tupak guarantees 100 percent satisfaction with his products for an unlimited time, and the instructions say: "Go to the contact page on tupakpsychic.com. Choose the subject 'Other' in the message body, write 'refund request' and the name of the Product which you would like to have refunded." This is what the site says, but in reality, customers complain that Tupak's company agrees to send refunds, but the refunds never come.

You can sue anybody. But like the grocery store that claims it's "not responsible" for carts that damage your car, or the gravel truck "not responsible" for flying stones that ding your windshield, psychics and clairvoyants protect themselves really well these days by posting on their sites that their readings are "for entertainment only."

The words "for entertainment only" let a psychic site or phone bank disclaim responsibility for whatever the reading makes you think or or do. Before buying a reading, check for these words on the website's "Terms of Service" page. If you see them, the psychic is not genuine and the readings not true or serious. People have actually dumped their families because an Internet psychic told them they'd meet their soulmate next week. If the site's "Terms of Service" said "for entertainment only," unhappy customers have no legal case against them.

You could sue the online psychic in small-claims court, but when the defendant is a company based in Europe, as most are, a non-European plaintiff is unlikely ever to see any money.

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